February 11 – March 3, 2011

MADAGASCAR, CARNET DE VOYAGE (France/11 min.)
(MADAGASCAR, A JOURNEY DIARY)
Dir. Bastien Dubois
A visual travel journal demonstrating the importance of dance, death, and traditional customs present and vibrant in the Malagasy society.

LET’S POLLUTE (USA/6min.)
Dir. Geefwee Boedoe
In the spirit of 50’s & 60’s educational films, ‘Let’s Pollute’ is a modern satire on how pollution is our heritage and keeps our economy growing strong, while instructing us how to be better polluters for a better blighted tomorrow.

THE GRUFFALO (UK/Germany/27 min.)
Dir. Max Lang and Jakob Schuh
The magical tale of a mouse who takes a walk through the woods in search of a nut. Encountering three predators who all wish to eat him – a fox, an owl and a snake – the plucky mouse has to use his wits to survive, creating an imaginary monster who then turns out to be all too real.

THE LOST THING (Australia/UK/15 min.)
Dir. Andrew Ruhemann
A boy discovers a bizarre looking creature while out collecting bottle tops at the beach. Realizing it is lost, he tries to find out who owns it or where it belongs, but is met with indifference from everyone else, who barely notice its presence, each unwilling to entertain this uninvited interruption to their day to day lives. For reasons he does not explain, the boy empathizes with the creature, and sets out to find a ‘place’ for it.

DAY & NIGHT (USA/6 min.)
Dir. Teddy Newton
When Day, a sunny fellow, encounters Night, a stranger of distinctly darker moods, sparks fly! Day and Night are frightened and suspicious of each other at first, and quickly get off on the wrong foot. But as they discover each other’s unique qualities – and come to realize that each of them offers a different window onto the same world – the friendship helps both to gain a new perspective.

The Animated Program also features two “highly commended” shorts:
THE COW WHO WANTED TO BE A HAMBURGER and URS

Oscar Shorts! 2011 Documentary Program
Oscar Shorts! 2011 Live Action Program